Ribnitz-Damgarten

Ribnitz-Damgarten is a town in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, situated on Lake Ribnitz (Ribnitzer See). Ribnitz-Damgarten is in the west of the district Vorpommern-Rügen.The border between the historical regions of Mecklenburg and Pomerania goes directly through the town; Damgarten is the eastern and Pomeranian part, and Ribnitz is the western and Mecklenburgian part.GeographyThe town is situated between the two Hanseatic cities Rostock and Stralsund, on the mouth of the river Recknitz. The Ribnitzer See, into which the Recknitz empties, is a bay of the Saaler Bodden (Bay of Saal). The Saaler Bodden in turn is the south-western end of a chain of bays leading to the Baltic Sea.Touristically relevant is Ribnitz-Damgarten's situation at the southern end of the Fischland, the peninsula dividing the chain of bays from the Baltic Sea.HistoryThe town's name derives in the Slavic settlements Rybanis and Damgor, located on opposite sides of the mouth of the Recknitz river.In ancient times, the Recknitz formed the border between Mecklenburg and Pomerania. At the ford a castle was built about 1200 on the Mecklenburg side, being the precursor of Ribnitz. The Danish princes of Rügen responded by erecting a fortress on the opposite side that later became the town of Damgarten.